Forget Positivity: Here’s How to Really Change Your Thinking

O.k., don’t really forget about positivity. Thinking positive thoughts isn’t without its value. But that old saying, “garbage in, garbage out,” is true. So, what’s a well-meaning person to do when they realize it is practically impossible to have a positive thought every single moment of their waking day?

Since it is nearly impossible to change your current thinking pattern simply by “trying” to be positive, we have to go about it a bit differently. If you can’t cross a river by going under it, or over it, swim through it – right?

Instead of vigilantly watching every thought, try this instead. Ask yourself honestly what you allow to go into your mind? Are you feeding yourself mental garbage every day? Do you click on the websites that only have bad news to tell you about, or do you switch on the radio to the latest tragedy and listen to it on the drive home from work? Do you watch television programs that assert your life’s possibilities or that make you feel hopeless about what you can achieve?

Do you associate with people who tend to look for solutions to their challenges, and always have a hopeful attitude, or are you weighed down mentally with “friends” and family throw cold water on every spark of creativity and insight that you tell them about? Do you feel depleted after spending time with certain people, but can’t really understand why? Think about what you most often communicate to one another? Is it uplifting and inspiring, or make you want to crawl into bed and stay there for a week?

Here’s the reason I ask. By taking a little inventory of the types of information we are putting into our brain, we can make a fairly educated guess at what type of thoughts we will most consistently have. We don’t need to catch ourselves every time we think something less than stellar about our looks, our weight, our station in life our relationship status, etc. We will know simply by what we are putting into our bodies.

It works in the very same way as what we eat. We would never expect to have infinite energy, bright eyes, and immaculate health if we were driving up to a fast-food restaurant every day and gulping down sodas and burgers. Nor would we expect to feel amazing if we were feeding ourselves highly processed foods full of health destroying chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, etc. The mind works in the same fashion. What are you feeding yourself? What is your mental diet?

Instead of trying to change every single thought to a positive one, why not simply change what you expect your consciousness to digest? You can start by reading an uplifting book tonight instead of turning on the television and watching a program that was most likely designed to make you feel badly about yourself so that you will go out and purchase some product that will make you feel better.

Then you can kindly tell your friends that you only want to share stories of success and possibility. Forget gossiping about other’s mistakes and shortcomings. Turn off the news, and even listen to the lyrics of the music you most often listen to. Is it something that you want your mind replaying on an infinite feedback loop? Because it will.

The mind then does something fascinating. Without you exerting any effort, it starts to think more positively. The same axiom – “garbage in, garbage out,” works in reverse. Positivity, life-affirming, loving, generous, inspiring information in means the same will come out the other side. You won’t have to “try” to be positive. It will happen simply because you’ve changed the kind of mental food you most often dine on.

Try this method for at least a week and observe any changes you notice in your life. You might be surprised – inspired, even – to keep putting higher quality mental food into your consciousness all the time. Like letting light through the forest canopy, your neurons will start to favor thought patterns which are uplifting. A happier, healthier, more positive experience awaits your ability to make this simple shift.